VIDEO: Blue Bottle Coffee, Troy confectionery form partnership

TROY -- Representatives from Blue Bottle Coffee were up from New York City earlier this week to teach employees at the newly opened Charles F. Lucas Confectionery how to use an espresso machine from 1967, adding to the theme of reclamation the store intended to create.

Blue Bottle Coffee, which originated in Oakland, Calif., puts an emphasis on fresh coffee and using organic products. Owner James Freeman also has a love for vintage machines. Vic Christopher, co-owner of the Charles F. Lucas Confectionery, went to one of Blue Bottle's locations on Berry Street in Williamsburg when he noticed they were using a 1962 Faema Urania roasting machine, similar to his 1967 Faema President roasting machine, he knew he needed to get into business with the company.

"We immediately felt home," Christopher said of his and Heather Lavine's, his wife and co-owner of the bar, trip to Blue Bottle. "At that very moment, we knew they were our kind of people."

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Not only will the wine bar be one of the coffee company's wholesale clients, but Joseph Zohn, training department manager for Blue Bottle, and Jasper Berg, the wholesale trainer, came up to Troy to give Christopher and his team a tutorial on how to make a quality shot of espresso.

Zohn said the company's main focus is on the deliciousness of the coffee, the sustainability of the product and the hospitality they can provide at their shops. After taking a trip to Troy and seeing Christopher's operation, he said he became thrilled about working with the confectionery.

"We're so excited to be represented with all of the other stuff going on here," Zohn said of the confectionery.

"Our philosophies kind of meshed," Berg added.

Christopher said he spent approximately 50 hours refurbishing the three-levered machine, which he said he got from Minissale's Wine Cellar Café, and said he took the machine apart with John Ambuhl, who has a fascination and skill in fixing steam-operated machinery.

"We took the machine a part and used deductive reasoning without knowing the parts," Christopher said.

"They got it to a point where we were able to do our training with it," said Zohn.

The most time consuming part, Christopher said, was trying to find the parts to make the machine work. With the greatest source being eBay, and talking through some of the challenges they ran into putting the machine together, Christopher said they were able to work through the fear of not being able to get the machine up to Blue Bottle's standards.

Gauge readers are installed in two spots in the confectionery, so Christopher said they'd be able to see what type of pressure they are using anywhere in the shop. Zohn said the amount of atmospheric pressure being used to make a cup of espresso is what is essential to the difference in brewing a cup of coffee.

"It's what creates the texture of the shot," Zohn said. "Normally, brewing a cup of coffee is done over several minutes. This takes seconds."

Berg said the machine is more manual than a regular espresso machine found today. Instead of just hitting a button and watching the machine do the whole process, Berg said the user controls the speed at which the water comes out by how fast he or she pulls the lever. Suffice to say, operating the machine takes a certain amount of finesse.

Having the machine was an integral part to the shop, Christopher said, noting it is the first thing people will see when they walk into the wine bar.